I'm making a cake for my daughter with a mermaid theme. The top tier is going to be buttercream coated in cake "sand" made from left over cake scraps. I would really like to "write" her name in the sand on the side of the tier. Does anyone have ideas or experience on how to do this? Thanks in advance for any advice!

Why don't you pipe her name in royal icing on baking paper, and while it's still wet, you could sprinkle it with cake crumbs/brown sugar/whatever sand-like material you have to hand. Let it dry fully, then attach to the side of the buttercream cake. It will be neater than trying to make the name in "sand" directly on the side of the cake.

You could even make the letters from fondant and cover them in "sand" and then attach them to the cake, if you're nervous about your piping skills.

I've just realised you want to imprint her name in the "sand" coated tier! Could you make a mold to impress on the side of the cake? - you could use fondant to make the letter shape and then let it dry, and then press the letters into the freshly sanded buttercream.

That is a brilliant idea winniemog, very clever.

Could you please tell my family that I'm clever - they'll never believe it!

You all are the best! Thank for the ideas...I will def try the dried fondant letters as a 'stamp'!